We are delighted you will be coming on holiday with us. Here is your Information Pack, containing all the information you need for your particular boat, starting from your booked boatyard. It contains everything you need to prepare for your holiday – what to bring, how to find us, and what you can expect of your boat and our service.
Please check you have the right page for you. Your Booking Confirmation shows these details. Other boats and bases have different pages.
This Pack contains useful information of many sorts. These are the key items, essential for you to study before your holiday:
Holiday Guide
Route Companion - where more than one is offered, pick the one that suits your plans
Canal & River Trust Boater’s Handbook - and Boater’s DVD
Specimen Handover Certificate
To give us information we need to prepare for your arrival, please return the Yellow Form (scroll down this page to find) as soon as you know all the answers but at least ten days before your holiday.
Since your whole crew need to be confident about safety before you can enjoy your holiday, we place great emphasis on giving you all the information and training you need to handle the boat, work locks and so on. This process starts now: please pass the url of this page to all your active crew, and encourage them to prepare. Then when you arrive to start your holiday, we will give you a thorough briefing and practical demonstration. Before we leave you on your own, we shall ask you to sign a Handover Certificate as a way of checking that we have explained everything to your satisfaction.
Each boat must have a Skipper. If that is not the Hirer, then the Hirer will sign to appoint a Skipper.
If you are a novice, this may seem daunting. But don’t worry; we are good at making our training straightforward and enjoyable. If you are an experienced boater, we are sure you will appreciate that we need to tell you about the numerous unusual features of our northern waterways, and to make sure that any gaps are covered.
Please see important information below under Stoppages and restrictions. This section is updated to cover any important temporary restrictions or closures, in the event of adverse weather or waterway breakdown. We encourage everyone to sign up for Canal & River Trust's email stoppage alerts. These include emails to update you on the state of the river navigations. These keep you in touch and make life much easier.
Please pay your balance six weeks before your holiday - the due date is on your Booking Confirmation.
There is a copy of the Boater’s Handbook and DVD on the boat.
We look forward to seeing you, and hope you have a wonderful time.
Yours sincerely,
Nigel and Susan Stevens
All this material (except where obviously published by CRT or others) is prepared by us exclusively for our customers. Versions shown here are updated periodically. Up-to-date information on opening times, stoppages etc. will be given to you on arrival. There is more about routes and canals on our website, but remember you can't get back to this page from the site, so bookmark it now.
You may come across low water levels, sometimes because someone has a left a paddle (sluice) open. Canal & River Trust reacts quickly, but refill water may have to be run over a long distance, so be patient. This is why it's so important to check everything is shut every time you leave a lock. Later in the summer there may be a pump drawing water from the river at Lock 16, which would be intended to help keep levels up through Hebden Bridge. However, leaks are making this difficult. The canal responds instantly to rainfall, but prolonged dry weather can lead to problems.
Water supply, Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Reservoir works at Diggle, Slaithwaite (Hill Top) and Sparth will reduce water supply this summer. Tunnel passages have been reduced to two boats each way on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Only boats booked through Standedge Tunnel may use the flights of locks either side of the tunnel - Marsden and Diggle.
If dry weather is prolonged or water is wasted, there is a risk that tunnel passages will be reduced further. CRT will do all it can to honour existing bookings.
Long trips
The waterways are 250 years old, so things can go wrong. In particular, the Huddersfield Narrow and Rochdale Canals are exceptionally heavily locked - 75 locks in 25 miles, and 91 locks in 33 miles. Therefore they are at higher risk of breakdown than other canals which are not trying to get across the Pennines by aggressive routes. It is in the nature of such breakdowns that there is no advance notice. Long trips are more at risk simply because they include more locks. We stand ready to help, but prepare a Plan B in case you need it.
Water supply, Leeds & Liverpool Canal
Major reservoir works have reduced capacity for the start of this season. Shorter lock opening times will help to conserve water for later in the season. Note that a number of sites still have normal operating hours - see our Lock Opening Times page. Please always take great care to leave all gates and paddles closed.
Sign up for stoppage alerts (scroll right down to 'Receive stoppage notices').
We will update you when you pick up your boat, and lock opening times will be in the Boat Manual on your boat.
Going eastwards from Sowerby Bridge, a 125 mile network of river navigations gives you lots of scope for boating, whether relaxed or adventurous.
If the summer is dry, river levels may be low, so in a few places you need to follow the right channel. We will brief you on this, and information is in your Boat Manual. But you won't run out of water!
Key items
You will need ALL of these.
Holiday Guide
Our complete guide to what to bring, where and when to come, and all you need to know. You can print this out - it will re-format to save paper.
Four short animations about boating safety, and one about how boaters can care for the environment.
Handover Certificate
We'll sign off one of these with you when we've completed your handover. Sample for reference.
Route Companions
These are not conventional cruising guides, but contain detailed information about practicalities and boating safety relevant to each route. You will need ONE of these.
Out & back holidays from Sowerby Bridge
Week and longer trips from Sowerby Bridge
Download for Out & back holidays of a week or longer from Sowerby Bridge.
Locks and swing bridges are available all daylight hours unless they are on this list. Temporary restrictions for water control are included. There's an up-to-date copy in your Boat Manual. See also Stoppages section below.
Navigation information
Stoppages and Restrictions
Sign up here (you need to scroll down) to receive email alerts from CRT on your phone, keeping you up to the minute on any emergency restrictions and closures.
Strong Stream alerts
Click to see continuously-updated navigation conditions for the rivers in our area. Use this when travelling on the Calder & Hebble or Aire & Calder Navigations.
Maps, Guides and Apps
There is a selection of guides on your boat. If you want to plan ahead, our online shop lists all the maps and guides you might find helpful, with pictures of each. There's also a new app which locates you on your phone or tablet as you move. Or you can order cruising guides by phone, or download and print a form.
Your boat
Your boat is Suffolk. Click for pictures. It has one fixed double bed or two fixed singles in the back cabin, which we make up with duvet set(s). The saloon can be converted to a double or two singles, for which we supply duvet sets as required. There is a colour TV/DVD and a radio CD player with Aux and USB ports. There is a 230v supply with microwave. You can bring your own appliances, max load 1kw, with ordinary 13 amp plug.
Your holiday is an Out & Back Trip from Sowerby Bridge on the Rochdale Canal and/or Calder & Hebble Navigation.
Layout 1 One double plus saloon convertible to one double or two singles
Layout 2 Two singles plus saloon convertible to one double or two singles
Length: 48ft. Inventory:click. to see list. Towels: are not normally supplied. If you have booked from overseas, we will supply towels free of charge (one bath and one hand towel per person). UK customers are welcome to order towels at £5 per set. Towels must be ordered in advance, using the Yellow Form. We will add the charge to your account and email a revised confirmation, for payment before the holiday please.
Yellow Form: Suffolk at Sowerby Bridge
Please fill in this form, if possible at least 10 days before your holiday. Or print the paper version , fill in by hand and return to us (directions on form).
Stoppages and restrictions
Updated 13 May 2024
Reservoirs recovered well over the winter. The ground is very wet, so streams will continue to top up levels into the spring. However, rivers are likely to rise easily with any rainfall, so navigation on the Calder & Hebble and Aire & Calder Navigations may be interrupted more frequently than usual.
Calder & Hebble Navigation
Ganny Lock (just above Brighouse): the bottom gates are quite leaky, so use both top paddles to fill the lock as quickly as you can, using as little water as possible.
Rochdale Canal
Lock 8, just before Hebden Bridge, loses water, which tends to drain the pound between Locks 8 and 9 - just where everyone likes to moor. So it's better either to go through and moor between Locks 9 and 10; or to moor near the winding hole below Fallingroyd Tunnel, and walk up into Hebden.
Various other locks leak quite badly, notably 12 and 17. Be organised going through these locks.
Leeds & Liverpool Canal
Reservoir works will restrict supply this year, so most locks will be padlocked overnight. Up-to-date opening times will be in your Boat Manual..
The stoppage to repair River Lock from 28 May to 26 July has been cancelled.
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Cerrtain reservoirs are being held down for works and if the weather is very dry there may be restrictions later in the year,
Navigation between Locks 1E and 3E will be restricted, see Opening Times.
Emergency stoppages are needed from time to time - that's why we suggest signing up for updates.
If your planned journey includes the river navigations (Calder & Hebble, Aire & Calder) then you have to be alert to the possibility that heavy rain makes the river flow too fast for safe navigation. If this happens, you simply tie up somewhere safe (in a lock cut) and wait for the excess water to run away. Observe carefully the coloured indicators which tell you when the river is safe to navigate.
Useful information
Here's some other stuff you might like.
Routes
Our website route suggestions
Check out all our routes using the information you may have seen before you booked - with timed examples.
Our list of places to eat and drink, by or near the canal.
We try to keep our pub list up to date, with the help of your reports. Bookmark it on your phone, and you'll be able to get directions from your mooring, and ring to check when they are serving food.
Food delivery by bike
Cargodale deliveries in the Calder Valley
Have your breakfast box or other fresh, local food delivered carbon-free to your boat by electric Cargobike. Cargodale will bring you fresh food to anywhere between Luddendenfoot and Walsden.Download leaflet. Order by Tuesday night, and confirm your location by lock or bridge number on Thursday night or Friday first thing, for Friday delivery.
This service is suspended - we will make your booking for you, and you should be prepared for its timing to change.
Huddersfield Narrow survey
Please go to the Huddersfield Canal Society's site and complete their online survey after your trip: specific to the Huddersfield Narrow. This survey is done each year in conjunction with CRT, and its results help prioritise improvements to the canal. You may be handed a paper copy on your trip.
Calder & Hebble Navigation
Calder & Hebble Navigation survey
CNS says: 'The Calder Navigation Society has introduced a survey page to its website and all users of the Calder & Hebble Navigation, particularly boaters, are invited to contribute to the survey irrespective of whether they are members of the society or not. The survey is particular to the Calder & Hebble Navigation. In doing so CNS can correlate the responses and then advise / pressurise C&RT to take remedial action where considered necessary and appropriate.'
Aire & Calder Navigation
Commercial Waterways
The Commercial Boat Operators Association has produced this Skipper's Guide to the Yorkshire and Trent Commercial Navigations. It contains useful maps and wise advice on dealing with commercial boats (the ones you really can call 'barges'). Use the bits about the Aire & Calder and South Yorkshire Navigations - ignore the sections on the Trent, which is tidal and out of bounds.
Rochdale Canal
Boater's Guide for the Calderdale section of the Rochdale Canal
Published by the Upper Calder Valley Linear Park Group. You can download here , for practical information for visitors.
Manchester Moorings
Published by CRT. A handy guide to good overnight moorings in Manchester. Useful for South Pennine Ring and one way trips via Rochdale.
CRT navigation guides
For individual waterways
CRT publish quite detailed guides. You can try here , but it's hard to find what you're looking for. This information is being revised.
Calderdale Events and Festivals
For the Calder Valley, Todmorden to Brighouse
A day-by-day guide to a huge variety of events and festivals across Calderdale, including Sowerby Bridge's very own Rushbearing. Or see Calderdale's guide to apring events in the valley.
Our complete guide to what to bring, where and when to come, and all you need to know. You can print this out - it will re-format to save paper. 
Download The Boater's Handbook.
Download for Out & back holidays of a week or longer from Sowerby Bridge. 
Download for Weekend and midweek breaks. 
Check out all our routes
We try to keep our pub list
Download leaflet
Click here
Google maps with directions from where you are to 
Download